Cruelty-Free Summer Glow: St. Moriz Tan

It’s the depths of winter here in Ireland. Okay, it’s not snowing, but there’s certainly no chance of sunbathing! As we enter spring (February is spring as far as I’m concerned) and gradually shed the heavy coats and infinite layers, I must admit I like seeing a little glow on my skin. Despite my dark hair, my skin is largely anything but and any real colour has to come from a bottle. Fortunately, I have found the perfect self-tanner.

Cruelty-free and an absolute steal at less than €5 per bottle, St. Moriz has become my holy grail tanning mouse. It’s incredibly easy to apply, doesn’t dry out the skin, comes out in a dark chocolate mousse so you can clearly see where you’ve already applied, and shows up almost immediately. I swear, I’d go so far as to say it’s fool-proof. As my skin is so fair usually, I go for the medium colour and I reckon I’ve mastered the application pretty well, if I do say so myself. So here are my tips and tricks…

Step 1: Shower. I always apply this immediately after I shower, and when I have given my body a good exfoliation. Pay specific attention to areas that have, well, crinkles basically. Knees and elbows are hot spots for caking of the self tan when it gets lodged in the folds and can give that orange hue. I find I get the best exfoliation from exfoliation gloves in this case, rather than a product alone. Also! If you shave your legs, be aware that tan may apply unevenly over the hair follicles. If you shave, exfoliate again afterwards and then shave again. This will give an extremely close cut, catching the hair that can often be trapped under dead skin cells and missed the first time round.

Step 2: Dry, moisturise and dry again. I use cocoa butter by DermaV10 (my review here) for the perfectly soft skin (which I must add, also prolongs both fake and real tans!) Let the moisturiser fully dry in before applying your tan.

Source: St. Moriz

Step 3: Application! Shake the bottle and using a glove (I repeat – use a glove!), pump two swirls of mousse tan onto your mitt. I like to apply a slightly deeper colour to where the sun would naturally hit my skin, and then a lighter coat on areas that would naturally stay paler, for example the “underside” of my arm. To do this, spread the tan firstly where you’d like to be darker and using what is almost the leftovers, blend it out into the paler areas. This technique is also ideal around the wrist area and on your hands. Remember that as you wash your hands, your fake tan will fade away, so blend it in such a way that it’s not distinctly noticeable. Also be extremely careful around the knuckle area – I also strongly advise against applying in your armpits and don’t go near your palms! I find with good blending, you can spread the colour gently down your hands.  Just make sure to let the tan dry well before you start bending and flexing your joints. Blending it key to this and practice makes perfect.

Over time and experience, you’ll learn how much you need to apply to get the desired tone for your skin. I’d advise against being too liberal your first time as it will develop gradually throughout the day. For example, I find that doing two pumps per arm, then two per chest (blending it all together) and then another one per arm is perfect. It can also be handy to practice on a lesser seen area of the body.

And there you have it!

The colour will last for several days, prolonged if you moisturise. You won’t notice much wash-away during the shower in my experience, unlike others that can really wreck the bathroom if you’re not careful. As I tend to apply early in the day, I rarely notice any residue on my sheets, but any that does appear washes out instantly. I have never noticed any on my clothing, which is miraculous. As for the smell, it can be a touch heavy at first application but fades very quickly and can be easily masked by a splash of perfume (wait until your tan has dried to apply, as it will make it run).

If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to leave me a comment below! Have you tried this brand?

MTL x

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